Running Up That Hill
by MFerDLF
Summary: "She knew she would (had) to go down, and she would do so fighting until her very last breath, but that was not what left her in such a state. She had finally found the words that seemed lost to her before." Thalia s sacrifice for her friends, up in Half-Blood Hill.


Their breaths came in short gasps and their legs burned with effort as they ran up that hill, the promise of safety being the only thing that kept their aching bodies moving forward.

That, and the horde of monster forty meters away that was closing in fast.

Luke was in the lead, his long legs advancing more than any of the demigods present. But his steps were hasty and uncoordinated, almost making him trip once, twice.

Annabeth was not as lucky. She was in the middle, trying to keep up with Luke's long strides in her shorter legs. Her hair was matted, and her jeans' knees were tinted green from having fallen so many times.

Thalia could not tell for sure, but she thought she saw tears slid down her face and she pressed her lips together in a futile attempt to not cry. Even in movement, she could see her little body racking as each sob stroke.

The terrain was irregular; the night was dark except for the occasional slash of lighting that lit up the sky. A storm was coming.

Thalia heard Grover gloat in horror as he looked back over his shoulder. The sound startled Annabeth, who tripped and lost her balance at once, her legs finally giving up and folding beneath her.

"Luke! Luke!" Thalia's throat was raw from the cold air when she noticed Annabeth's fall. Her words were lost in the fierce wind around her, mingled with the roars of the various monster and the crunching of snapping branches as they gave way to heavy feet.

Luke chose that moment to look back. He immediately turned back in his tracks. Every muscle in his body was screaming in protest and his face was flushed, but he could not just leave them behind.

Thalia was dragging an unmoving Annabeth as best as she could. Grover was just too far ahead to have noticed anything that was happening. The three demigods were on their own.

Luke stooped and lifted Annabeth up. She was very pale and had a bloody gash in her forehead, but otherwise she was uninjured.

A lighting lit the somber scene in a flash of ethereal light, and they were able to see back and make out the figures of the monsters, now so very close.

It was with a sinking realization that Thalia knew they wouldn't make it. Not like this, not all four. She knew what she had to do.

The wind howled in her ears, and the lightings in the sky became more and more frequent as a storm approached, as if all the gods were against her newfound decision, but it was too late: she would not back down.

Her heart beats became erratically frequent, it felt like her heart knew it had minutes, seconds left and was in a frenzied hurry. Thump, thump, thump. Tick, tock.

The cold wind and rain beat against her ruthlessly, but Thalia felt numb. It was only when warmer fingers wrapped around her wrist that she was jarred back to the very present.

She stared at the fingers, uncomprehending, until her electric gaze made its way upward and dug into his.

Luke, who in the dim light looked so much like little Jason, Thalia thought, her heart wrenching in sadness. The same shade of blond and the same forget-me-not blue eyes.

Those same forget-me-not eyes who now were looking at her, scrutinizing her, but not critically so. They were looking for an explanation for her actions, but she had none.

Another lightning; Zeus was watching, she was sure of it. _Well, let him watch,_ Thalia thought bitterly._ A bit too late to worry about me, dad. _

Thalia took a shuddering breath and then she stepped away from Luke.

"No." His voice was hoarse, but determined. "No, Thalia, you can't-"

"We won't make it!" Thalia snapped harshly as reality crushed into her. Luke's face contorted and his body recoiled at her venom-filled words, but in no time he was closer than before. Annabeth began to stir in his arms and Luke swiftly placed her on the wet grass. Thalia watched quietly.

"Run, child, run!" Luke said to Annabeth. She shot one last look at them, she did not even question his order, before scurrying as fast as she could to where Grover was.

Luke gripped Thalia's shoulders tightly, trying to hold her down, and she wrapped her hands around his wrists, refusing to do so.

A choked sound escaped Thalia's lips as an immense sadness washed over her. It was all over now, she could feel it. She never had a chance.

Thalia felt the urge to say something to _him_, anything, everything. She opened her lips and struggled for words, but she didn't find any. Her thoughts were no longer coherent.

An expression of utter defeat crossed Luke's handsome features and Thalia thought anxiously that he would finally let her go. She didn't want that. That would mean that there was no option left for her than facing the oncoming army.

A fierce determination rippled for a moment in his face, but before Thalia could figure out what that meant, Luke's lips had already crashed into hers.

It was a brief kiss which combined desire, yearning and desperation. A warm feeling spread inside both of them, and they momentarily forgot where they were.

But, like all things, it was ephemeral.

She separated herself somewhat reluctantly from him and pushed him firmly in the direction of very top of the hill. He started running after Annabeth with one last sidelong glance.

Thalia turned back now to face the monsters, got Aegis ready and set and her fingers wrapped individually onto her sword's hilt. Her mouth curled into a disdainful snarl.

A mere façade, for Zeus' daughter was, for once, at a loss.

She _knew_ she would (had) to go down, and she would do so fighting until her very last breath, but that was not what left her in such a state.

She had finally found the words that seemed lost to her before.

Thalia shook her head. She uttered a war cry before plunging into a battle in which she was hopelessly destined to lose, those not even uttered last words resonating aimlessly in her thoughts.

[I love you.]


End file.
